We have recently discovered that Callie, our female Eclectus has Borna virus. Her vet suspected it and recommended a blood test which was done about three weeks ago. She had established a habit of gnawing at her left foot until it bled and would get infected. I was running her to the vet regularly for antibiotics and foam neck braces to get the problem under control. What we noticed was that she would start chewing on it in the Fall of each of the past three years, so we originally suspected the yearly hormone changes that most pet Parrots experience from Fall through Spring. I DID NOT expect the Borna Virus test to come back positive.
After a long visit with the vet today, some misconceptions that I had were cleared up, but it is still unclear to us if the Borma Virus or the hormones are the cause of her desire to gnaw at her foot. She wore a foam collar for about 3+ months and forgot about the bad habit, has had the collar off now for about three weeks and is not interested in her foot at all at this time, but we are entering the Fall thru Spring seasons when it has been a problem in the past and we don’t want it to reoccur. She has had two in a series of 5-6 hormone shots to see if this also calms her down and she doesn’t start that nasty habit again.
This is what I learned from the vet today…
* Borna Virus was first discovered in Borna, Germany, when cavalry horses began to act peculiar.
* It is NOT transferable to humans as I was originally told by someone else. There are some known cases of Borna Virus in humans but it is rare and it is a different strain from the ones that birds get.
* It is contagious to other birds but only through dried or wet fecal matter, not through dander, powder and such. So not quite as easily transferable as I was originally led to believe. Thorough disinfecting around food bowls and sink where they are cleaned and perches where fecal matter might sit is the best practice. We don’t know if our other Parrot, Peaches has it, but since they have shared the same cage outside on the deck, there is a good possibility.
* There is no known cure at this time and it is a progressive disease. The only treatment used currently is Celebrex which relieves the inflammation in and around the tissue where the virus attacks.
* There are more tests under development but labs are battling it out to see who will be able to perform the tests and until that is resolved, no more tests will be performed that would confirm whether her body is fighting off the virus naturally. Until then, we don’t know if it’s the Borna Virus or the hormone change that makes her do this.
* There’s no way of telling when she got it. She could have been born with it since birds can be a carrier for many years before it manifests, or she may have contracted it while being boarded at a pet store or even from a vet visit.
Callie’s vet has chosen to continue with the hormone shots for now, since she is not chewing at this time. She will start Celebrex orally at a later date if necessary.
What we do for our pets.